The present invention is in the field of car-wash accessories and pertains more particularly to hand-held devices used for removing standing water from, and applying spray-on wax to automobiles and other vehicles.
One of the largest and most lucrative product markets in the United States involves cosmetic accessories for automobiles and light trucks. There are literally thousands of products available that are dedicated to enhancing the cosmetic appearance of a consumer""s pride and joy, namely, his automobile. From products that add luster to an expensive paint job, to products that add sparkle to chrome, all one has to do is visit a local parts store to see discover a broad range of such innovative products.
One category of products possibly containing the least variety from which to choose is car-wash products. Car-wash accessories known in the art include special towels for removing water and drying automobile finishes after a car-wash, or chamois cloths for absorption of excess water and the like. Other products in this category include automated hot-air blowers for quick drying the automobile finish, or various hand-held cloth or synthetic pads for rubbing excess water off of an automobiles finish.
Bottled solutions or treatments are sometimes employed as aids to reducing spotting or staining of automobiles finish often resulting from standing water. The type of water used in washing a car plays a part in possible spotting or staining that may be present on an automobiles finish after a wash. For example, if the water is very hard (has a lot of dissolved minerals) minerals, resultant spotting can be extreme; whereas, if the water is softer, spotting may be lessened. These bottled solutions or pastes are designed to reduce spotting via their interaction with the water itself
Further to the above, many professional detailers offer full-service hand washing and regular wash programs. One of the advantages of this type of service for the customer is that the vehicle is cleaned with a detailer""s touch, which tends to be much more thorough than a standard car wash. One of the most useful products used by a professional detailer is a chemical/liquid spray-on wax product. Such multi-purpose products may be used for adding extra gloss to the finish of a vehicle after a full-service wash, for example, or for touching up the finish of the vehicle after an exterior detail job, showroom wiping and dry-washing.
Spray-on waxes were originally developed for the show vehicle industry, allowing technicians to quickly wipe dust and fingerprints off of the vehicles on display or in long-term storage. If the vehicle is never exposed to any substantial amount of direct sunlight, then the protection provided by occasional spray waxing is often sufficient. Spray waxes also provide the consumer with many similar advantages, one of which is providing a quick way to accomplish light surface cleaning of the vehicle""s finish, such as removing dust and fingerprints, and so on.
Most spray waxes also have a high silicone content which helps to hide minor surface imperfections such as micro-scratches and the typical method of application, simply spraying on and wiping off, allows detailers and consumers alike to do all of this very quickly. The protective wax or silicone elements in typical spray-on products are solid in nature and are suspended in the water-based or chemical-based solution after thorough mixing of the product, and in general, the more solids to spray-on wax contains, the more cleaning and protective power to product will have. Higher solid content, however, also means that the spray-on wax will be more difficult to buff off using the conventional means of application and wiping off with a cloth or chamois.
An advantage for consumers in using such spray-on wax products is that the vehicle receives a protective coating that lasts typically one to two weeks, and the consumer is not required to pay the substantial cost of a complete exterior detail job. Properly applied, the application of spray-on wax products provides a finish on the vehicle which appears much shinier, with less visible micro-scratches, then it would if it was simply washed and dried.
Most spray-on cleaning and waxing products on the market today are simply water-based chemicals with a mild cleaning ability providing one to two weeks of protective value for the paint of the vehicle. Others are solvent-based and thus provide slightly more cleaning and protective abilities. Many manufacturers now carry a liquid spray wax designed just for cleaning the surface finish of the vehicle without water, the idea being that if the vehicle is not extensively dirty or muddy, a detailer can spray the dry-wash liquid directly onto the vehicle surface and wipe it off with a cloth or chamois, removing both the cleaner and any dirt that is on the surface. Such dry-washing products are usually the most effective cleaners and provide the longest protective durability, often lasting up to several months. Many dry-wash products also contain stronger protective elements, when compared to standard spray-on wax/cleaning products, some even containing an added liquefied polymer sealant, providing a protective durability that can range from several weeks to several months.
At the time of this patent application the most successful (least damaging) method known in the art for removing standing water from an automobile finish, and evenly distributing and wiping spray-on wax/cleaning products is likely the time-tested chamois. The chamois is a highly flexible section of treated animal skin that has a large absorption capability. The chamois is typically used just after the automobile has been rinsed. It is laid out on the surface and pulled in the direction of the user for removing standing water, and, in the case of spreading and buffing of sprayed-on wax, or similar spray-on products, is wiped in a back and forth or circular pattern in alternating directions.
Although the chamois cloth is widely accepted as a viable method for removing standing water and wiping sprayed-on wax products as described above, there are some inherent problems and limitations associated with its use. Because of the chamois cloth""s persistent adhesion to a wet surface, moving the chamois from side to side, or at directions away from the user, such as when wiping sprayed-on wax products, is relatively difficult. The chamois cloth has a tendency to fold or roll under itself if it is not being pulled directly toward the user. This drawback limits accessibility to areas that may need to be wiped. Another problem is that, while a chamois is very successful in absorbing standing water and spreading spray-on wax, the chamois must be wrung out when it is loaded with water and/or spray-on wax products, and such cloths are difficult to wring.
Because of these difficulties several chamois cloths must often be used to completely remove standing water or other liquid materials from a vehicle finish. Although the chamois is very soft and generally harmless to a paint job or finish, it is possible that unseen dirt or particles left over from the car-wash process get lodged in the chamois and can cause scratches when the chamois is pulled across, or otherwise wiped across the surface of an automobile This can be particularly disturbing for those who own expensive show cars that support special auto paints that may be susceptible to scratching.
Moreover, if a spray-on wax is applied to the wet surfaces of the vehicle just after washing, or is applied to a dry just-washed surface, a first cloth or chamois (or set thereof) is required for spreading the sprayed-on wax product, which may be mixed with the standing water (or not, in the case of dry-washing/waxing), and a second set of cloths/chamois is required to finally wipe and buff the waxed finish to a shine.
It is well-known in the art that a typical painted surface of a vehicle, although it may appear perfectly smooth to the naked eye, is actually quite porous, containing many tiny pores in the form of valleys and crevices. This is especially apparent when the painted surface is viewed under very high magnification. An inherent problem in using a cloth or chamois for spreading and buffing spray-on wax products is that, since the wiping and buffing, process must typically occur very quickly after application of the spray-on wax because of rapid evaporation of the very thin layer of water and/or carrier solution, the protective wax solids which are suspended in the carrier solution do not have the opportunity to settle into the pores, and also are not effectively forced into the porous surfaces of the paint surface by the wiping action of a cloth or chamois. Many of the tiny wax solids will tend to be collected by the cloth or chamois instead of desirably being forced into the pores and thereby creating a glossier finish.
Other types of cloths are available and well known in the art, such as re-washable towels that are sold in most auto-care shops. The absorption qualities, as well as the scratch resistant properties of these products typically vary. These towel-type products are generally intended for users who expect marginal results and are not overly concerned with the cosmetic appearance of their automobiles. Similarly, hand-held pads of the type made out of synthetic fiber vary in their absorption quality, as well as scratch resistant properties. While hand-held pads provide a convenient place for a user""s hand (usually straps on the top surface), they do little else to improve the technology of water removal or evenly distributing spray-on wax products and enabling the wax solids to more completely fill the tiny pores of the paint.
It is well known in the art that some products with rubber-like blades, such as squeegees and windshield wipers, work fairly well removing water from a flat or slightly curved surface. These devices, however, are not well adapted to removal of standing water from automobile bodies, because they cannot conform to the sometimes radical and compound curvature of an automobile body. Moreover, many body panels for vehicles such as trucks and airplanes have uneven surfaces, such as broken by rivet heads and the like, and also by intentional functional or ornamental patterns. One such pattern is a diamond shape panel that is well-known in the art and used for truck trailers and the like. Wipers are not known in the art that are efficient in removing standing water from such surfaces.
Air blowers are sometimes employed to evaporate standing water droplets on a surface. This method is most used in automated car washes and the like; and it is well known in the art that an automobile owner concerned with the cosmetic appeal of his or her vehicle would not, under normal circumstances, patronize a commercial auto-wash. Moreover, air blowers of the type that are hand-held are typically difficult because they are cumbersome, awkward, and rather heavy to hold for the time it takes to dry a car body. Furthermore, power cords can get in the way while working on an automobile surface, and cause scratches and other damage as well. In addition, electricity and or battery costs may be a deterrent to those having to wash multiple automobiles such as would be the case with a car dealership, etc.
What is clearly needed is a method and apparatus for removing standing water from surfaces that is adapted to conform around the sometimes compound and radical curvature of the outer surface of the bodies of automobiles, trucks, boats, airplanes and many other types of vehicle surfaces, as well as other such finished surfaces having similarly compound and radical curvature, bumps, rivet heads and other such protrusions from surfaces to be dried, and is at the same time gentle to surface finishes, easy to use, inexpensive, and durable. Such an apparatus is further provided with a grasping handle that provides a comfortable and natural grip posture for the user, while at the same time providing a secure and slip-resistant gripping surface enabling the user to securely and comfortably grasp the apparatus, particularly useful when the surface of the gripping portion of a handle of the apparatus is wet with water or slippery automotive cleaning or wax products. The method and apparatus in various embodiments is also enabled for evenly spreading spray-on wax or other such vehicle finish products that are sprayed on a wet or dry just-washed painted surface, while significantly improving the application of the distributed wax or other such solids down into the pores of the paint. It is to these objects and others that the present invention is dedicated, and apparatus and methods are taught herein in enabling detail for accomplishing these ends.
In a preferred embodiment of the present invention a water-wiping apparatus for wiping standing water from a curved surface is provided, comprising a flexible panel of a first height, with an upper long edge of a first length and a lower long edge of a second length, greater than the first length, the upper long edge centered on the length of the lower long edge, a substantially rigid handle having a length substantially equal to the first length attached along the upper long edge, and a lip formed along the lower edge, extending to one side of the flexible panel and ending in a sharp line at the end away from the flexible panel. Also in a preferred the lip has a triangular cross-section in a plane cutting the panel orthogonal to the length and parallel to the height, and in some embodiments the lip preferably joins the flexible panel at an angle equal or less than thirty degrees.
In some embodiments each end of the upper long edge of the flexible panel is joined to the closest end of the lower long edge by a smooth, curved shape, the shape mirrored at each end of the panel. Also in some embodiments the handle is symmetrical about a central plane common to the panel, and has two sides corresponding to opposite sides of the panel, further comprising an upper and a lower longitudinal ridge on each side of the handle, the ridges spaced apart to form a longitudinal groove to engage a user""s fingers or thumb, providing a sure grip for the user on the handle. In some cases the lip extends to both sides of the flexible panel.
In some preferred embodiments the upper longitudinal ridge on each side of the handle extends from the central plane of symmetry to a greater extent than does the lower longitudinal ridge, and in some embodiments the handle further comprises an interface for attaching a handle extension. In yet other embodiments the opposite ends of the handle are rounded, presenting a substantially curved outward surface toward the ends of the apparatus, to avoid damaging contact with surfaces being wiped.
In another aspect of the invention a blade insert for a water-wiping apparatus is provided, comprising a flexible panel of a first height, with an upper long edge of a first length and a lower long edge of a second length, greater than the first length, the upper long edge centered on the length of the lower long edge, a handle interface along the upper long edge adapted to join the flexible panel to a rigid handle, and a lip formed along the lower edge, extending to one side of the flexible panel and ending in a sharp line at the end away from the flexible panel.
In some embodiments of the blade insert has a triangular cross-section in a plane cutting the panel orthogonal to the length and parallel to the height, and in some embodiments the lip joins the flexible panel at an angle equal or less than thirty degrees. Also in some embodiments each end of the upper long edge of the flexible panel is joined to the closest end of the lower long edge by a smooth, curved shape, the shape mirrored at each end of the panel. In some cases the lip extends to both sides of the flexible panel.